1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates in general to high speed storage systems and, in particular, to high speed storage systems in which the storage is provided by a substantially continuously moving storage carousel which is spaced from a vertical lift, with communication between the storage unit and the vertical lift being accomplished by way of a continuously moving shuttle unit. The vertical lift serves to transport storage containers or other objects to be stored between a conveyor level and the desired storage level on the storage carousel.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Previous expedients where substantially continuously moving storage carousels were proposed experienced considerable difficulty in loading and extracting storage containers or other objects from the storage carousel unit. In general, very complicated and expensive insertion and extraction assemblies such as those described in Lichti, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,983,091, were thought to be necessary. Special container mounting assemblies and extractor or inserter mechanisms cooperating therewith were proposed, for example, in Lichti, U.S. Pat. No. 4,968,207. Matheny, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,561,820, proposes the use of an elevator mounted adjacent to and communicating directly with a storage carousel, thereby substantially limiting the speed of the system. These and other difficulties of the prior art have been overcome according to the present invention.